The S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.6% to around 8,601 on Friday, hitting its highest level in two weeks, driven by a rally in mining stocks. The index is also poised for its strongest weekly gain since mid-May, following reports that the US and China reached an understanding to accelerate rare earth shipments to the US. The framework agreement, announced by the White House, came out of recent trade talks and includes China resuming rare earth exports in exchange for the US easing countermeasures, though it still awaits final approval from Chinese leadership. Sentiment was further supported by speculation over a potential leadership change at the US Federal Reserve, which reinforced bets of earlier rate cuts. At home, all eyes are on next week’s May retail sales, that offer clues over Australia’s growth outlook. On the corporate front, Chinese export-reliant miners led the charge, up over 3%, such as BHP (3.6%), Fortescue (2.9%), and South32 (2.1%). Gold miner Northern Star also gained 0.8%.